U.S. names 23-man roster for South Africa

Coach Bob Bradley cut seven players from his preliminary roster Wednesday to announce his 23-man team for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Released were defenders Chad Marshall and Heath Pearce, midfielders Alejandro Bedoya, Sacha Kljestan and Robbie Rogers and forwards Brian Ching and Eddie Johnson. I’m kinda saddened to see Kljestan and Ching go, as I thought they were important contributors for the team. The final team was released following a 4-2 friendly loss to the Czech Republic in which the Americans used mostly backup players.

The U.S. opens its World Cup action vs. England on June 12. They are also grouped with Algeria and Slovenia. Here is the official roster: